Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Boycott: NBA Playoff Games Called Off Amid Player Protest
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
August 26, 2020

Share

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — All three NBA playoff games scheduled for Wednesday have been postponed, with players around the league choosing to boycott in their strongest statement yet against racial injustice.

Called off: Games between Milwaukee and Orlando, Houston and Oklahoma City and the Los Angeles Lakers and Portland. The NBA said all three games would be rescheduled, yet did not say when.

The dramatic series of moves began when the Bucks — the NBA’s team from Wisconsin, a state rocked in recent days by the shooting by police officers of Jacob Blake, a Black man — didn’t take the floor for their playoff game against the Magic. The teams were set to begin Game 5 of their series shortly after 4 p.m., with the Bucks needing a win to advance to the second round.

Players had been discussing boycotting games in the bubble after the shooting of Blake by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin. More discussions among players on teams still in the bubble were scheduled Wednesday, presumably on how — or if — to go forward, but even before that the Bucks apparently decided they would act.

“Some things are bigger than basketball,” Bucks senior vice president Alex Lasry tweeted. “The stand taken today by the players and (the organization) shows that we’re fed up. Enough is enough. Change needs to happen. I’m incredibly proud of our guys and we stand 100% behind our players ready to assist and bring about real change.”

There are three other playoff games scheduled Thursday. It was unclear if they would be affected. Several NBA players, including the Lakers’ LeBron James, tweeted out messages demanding change and the Boston Celtics’ official Twitter account did the same.

Magic Players and Referees Were on the Basketball Court for the Game but Milwaukee Never Took the Floor

“We weren’t given advanced notice about the decision but we are happy to stand in solidarity with Milwaukee, Jacob, and the entire NBA community,” Orlando guard Michael Carter-Williams said. “Change is coming.”

Magic players and referees were on the basketball court for the game but Milwaukee never took the floor. Eventually everyone else left and the arena staff soon took the balls, towels and tags that go on player chairs back inside.

National Basketball Players Association President Chris Paul of the Oklahoma City Thunder and guard Russell Westbrook of the Houston Rockets were seen emerging from a conversation, not long before it became known that their teams also decided to not play their scheduled game Wednesday.

“Today we stand united with the NBA Office, the National Basketball Players Association, the Milwaukee Bucks and the rest of the league condemning bigotry, racial injustice and the unwarranted use of violence by police against people of color,” the Magic and its ownership group, the DeVos family, said in a statement.

Demanding societal change and ending racial injustice has been a major part of the NBA’s restart at Walt Disney World. The phrase “Black Lives Matter” is painted on the arena courts, players are wearing messages urging change on their jerseys and coaches are donning pins demanding racial justice as well.

Many players wrestled for weeks about whether it was even right to play, fearing that a return to games would take attention off the deaths of, among others, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd in recent months.

Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, was fatally shot when police officers burst into her Louisville, Kentucky apartment using a no-knock warrant during a narcotics investigation in March. The warrant was in connection with a suspect who did not live there and no drugs were found. Then on May 25, Floyd died after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee into the Black man’s neck for nearly eight minutes — all captured on a cell phone video.

The Postponed NBA Games Came on the Fourth Anniversary of Colin Kaepernick’s Very First Protest

Bucks guard George Hill said after Blake’s shooting that he felt players shouldn’t have come to Disney.

“We’re the ones getting killed,” Los Angeles Clippers coach Doc Rivers, who is Black, said in an emotional postgame speech Tuesday night. “We’re the ones getting shot. We’re the ones that we’re denied to live in certain communities. We’ve been hung. We’ve been shot. And all you do is keep hearing about fear. It’s amazing why we keep loving this country and this country does not love us back. And it’s just, it’s really so sad.”

The Celtics and Toronto Raptors met Tuesday to discuss boycotting Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series, which had been scheduled for Thursday. Members of the National Basketball Players Association were also part of those meetings, and Miami forward Andre Iguodala — a union officer — said around 2:15 p.m. that he did not believe a boycott plan had been finalized.

Less than two hours later, the Bucks wouldn’t take the floor.

“When you talk about boycotting a game, everyone’s antenna goes up,” Iguodala said. “It’s sad you have to make threats like that — I wouldn’t say threats — but you have to be willing to sacrifice corporate money for people to realize there’s a big problem out there.”

The postponed NBA games came on the fourth anniversary of Colin Kaepernick’s very first protest of “The Star-Spangled Banner” before an NFL preseason game. Kaepernick sat through the anthem for his first protest, which he said was to protest racial inequality and police mistreatment of minorities. then famously kneeled during the anthem going forward.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Shohei Ohtani Reaches 3 Times in Home Debut as the Dodgers Rout the Cardinals 7-1

DON'T MISS

Caitlin Clark and Iowa Draw Nearly 5 Million Viewers for Second-Round NCAA Win

DON'T MISS

Here Are Some Numbers That Will Help You Get Your March Madness Fix for the Sweet 16

DON'T MISS

Opening Day 2024: What to Watch for as 28 of 30 MLB Teams Start Their Season

DON'T MISS

Davante Adams, Deebo Samuel & George Kittle Among the Stars in Netflix Series ‘Receiver’

DON'T MISS

Utah Coach Says Team Was Shaken After Experiencing Racist Hate During NCAA Tournament

DON'T MISS

NFL Owners Approve a Radical Overhaul to Kickoff Rules

DON'T MISS

Shohei Ohtani Says He Never Bet on Sports, Interpreter Stole Money

DON'T MISS

Top Freshmen Watkins of USC and Kansas’ Nichols Square Off in Bid for Women’s NCAA Sweet 16 Berth

DON'T MISS

Ohtani to Speak to Media for 1st Time Since Illegal Gambling, Theft Allegations Against Interpreter

No data was found

Facebook News Tab Will Soon Be Unavailable as Meta Scales Back News and Political Content

2 hours ago

Stock Market Today: Wall Street Rises to More Records to Close Out Its Latest Winning Month

2 hours ago

A Fresno County First: Kerman Council Passes Amended Gaza Cease-Fire Resolution

2 hours ago

UN Top Court Orders Israel to Open More Land Crossings for Aid into Gaza

2 hours ago

How Involved Is Southern California Consulting Firm in FUSD Executive Dealings?

3 hours ago

Biden’s Fundraiser with Obama and Clinton Nets a Record $25 Million, His Campaign Says

3 hours ago

Fresno Unified’s Self-Protection Racket Is Hurting Our Kids

4 hours ago

Rockin’ Out or Laughing, the Valley Has Its Pick of Weekend Events

4 hours ago

Ex-Correctional Officer at Women’s Prison in California Sentenced for Sexually Abusing Inmates

7 hours ago

Caitlin Clark and Iowa Draw Nearly 5 Million Viewers for Second-Round NCAA Win

7 hours ago

PGA HOPE at Riverside Golf Course Introduces Military Veterans to the Game

PGA HOPE, now underway at Fresno’s Riverside Golf Course, is designed to introduce golf to veterans and active duty military members t...

27 mins ago

PGA HOPE at Fresno's Riverside Golf Course
27 mins ago

PGA HOPE at Riverside Golf Course Introduces Military Veterans to the Game

2 hours ago

Cronenworth’s Big Hit Helps Lift the Padres to a 6-4 Win Over Melvin’s Giants

2 hours ago

Shohei Ohtani Reaches 3 Times in Home Debut as the Dodgers Rout the Cardinals 7-1

2 hours ago

Facebook News Tab Will Soon Be Unavailable as Meta Scales Back News and Political Content

2 hours ago

Stock Market Today: Wall Street Rises to More Records to Close Out Its Latest Winning Month

2 hours ago

A Fresno County First: Kerman Council Passes Amended Gaza Cease-Fire Resolution

2 hours ago

UN Top Court Orders Israel to Open More Land Crossings for Aid into Gaza

3 hours ago

How Involved Is Southern California Consulting Firm in FUSD Executive Dealings?

MENU

CONNECT WITH US

Search

Send this to a friend